Rail-joint.



Patented Feb. 9, 1915.

D. STEEL. RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION FILED .TULY'25, 1913.

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THE NORRIS PETERS CO-, PHDTO-LITHO., WASHINGTON D. C.

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RAIL-JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. e, 1915.

Application filed July 25, 1913. Serial No. 781,217.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVIDSON STEEL, C1tl zen of the United. StateS reSiding. atv Robinson, in the county of. Crawford and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail-Joints, of which the: following is a specification.

This invention relates; to improvements in railway rail joints, and has for one of: its objects to improve the construction and increase the strength of the joint and its utility and efficiency.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simply constructed joint whereby the rail ends are firmly supportedand held and eflectually prevented from becoming loosened. 7

Another object of the invention is toprovide a simply constructed joint which may be readily tightened-in event of: the. parts working loose and without. detaching any of the parts;

With these and other ob ects in view the invention consists. in certain novel features of construction as hereinafter shown and described and then specifically pointed out in the claims; and in the drawings illustrative of the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of; theconfronting ends of a pair of rails with one of. the improved joints applied. Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3' is a plan. view'of the parts shown in Fig-L 1. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the combined clamping and locking member. Fig. 5' is a detached perspective view of the combined locking key and com-l bined locking key and compression meme oer, and' 'Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 2 illustrating a slight modification of the construction.

.Correspon'ding. and like parts are referred to: in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by .the' same reference characters.

No change is required in; the rails, and. the device is readily attached to. rails; of various forms and sizes without material structural change in the device.

The: confronting: ends of a pair of rails of the usual form; are: represented at 1 10-11..

. Extending beneath the rails at their con fronting ends is a bearing member 12 having a flange engaging portion 13 and a ver tical web engaging portion lat. At the juncture of the flange and web engaging portions the brace is curved with a relatively large radius as represented at 15 to enable the plate and its brace to be readily inserted beneath the rails as hereafter eX- pla-ined. The bearing member 12 extends beyond'the flange at the side opposite to the brace 15 for a considerable distance and the. extended portion is provided with a vertically extending rib 16 integral with the member 12 and formed with longitudinal recesses 17-18 in its inner face. The rib 16 extendsobliquely to the longitudinal plane ofthe bearing portion 12 and of the rail asshown in Fig. 3, or with the inner face of the web nearer the flange of the rail at one end than the other end. Located between the rib 16 and the rail is aclamp member comprising a flange engaging portion 19 a vertical brace portion 20 which bears against the web of the railat the side opposite to the portion 14 and overhangs the portion 19, as shown at 21. The overhanging portion 21 forms a 1ongitudinal recess or socket 25 which confronts the obliquely directed longitudinal recess 1'8. A stop rib 22, integral with the portions 12 and 16 extends inwardly from therib: 16, and against which the adjacent edge of the flanges of the rails bear, as shown in Fig. 2.

At its outer edge the portion 19 of, the bearing member extends obliquely to the longitudinal plane of the rail and. of the member 12 and beans at its inner edge within the longitudinal recess or channel 25. Bearing upon the upper face of the portion. 19 of the bearing member is a combined locking and holding key represented as a whole at 28 and with a rib 21 upon its outer edge and bearing'in the obliquely directed channel or groove 18. Clamp bolts 26 extend through the members 14-20 and the web of the rail and are provided with clamp nuts 27 and extend by their lower faces rearwardly of the rib 24? of the mem-' her 23. When the nuts are located with their side edges at right angles to thelongitudinal plane of the rail, as shown at the left of Fig. 1, their lower edges extend into close proximity to the general surface of the member23, and are held thereby from turning, the member 23 thus serving to prevent the nut from reverse movement after being once set up. At one end the member 23 is preferably provided with a plurality of ratchet-tooth-like depressions 28 into which one of the corners of one of the nuts 27 extends as represented at the right of Fig. 1, and thus effectually locks the member, 23 from retrograde movement- To assemble the improved device the parts are initially separated and the member 12 with its combined flange and web brace 13-44 and the rib 16 inserted by passing the edge containing the rib beneath the rail and bringing the portion 12 up against the bottom of the rail, the relatively long curve 15 at the juncture of the portions 13--1 1 permitting this location of the member 12 and its attachments. The member'19 together with the portions 20 and 22 is then inserted from one end and moved into place until the apertures for the clamp bolts are in transverse alinement. The clamp bolts are then inserted and all of the nuts 27 turned home and left ith their side edges vertical as shown at the right in Fig. 1. The member 23 is then inserted and driven tightly into position and thus applying transverse strain between the parts' and firmly locking them together, and at the same time preventing any retrograde movement of the nuts. If the recesses 28 are employed, the nut which for the time being is located opposite the recesses, is rotated slightly forward until one of its corners bears into the recess 28 which for the time being is adjacent to the nut, as represented at the right in Fig. 1.

The improved device is simple'i'n construction, can be'inexpensively manufactured and without change of any kind in the,

rails, and effectually supports the rails at the joint, and renders the joint as stiff and rigid as otherportions of the rail, and thus effectually prevents anybrooming or pounding of the rail ends, or any jarring or concussion as the wheels of the running stock pass over the joint.

In that form of the invention shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings, the rail is indicated by. the numeral 29, and disposed against its web at one side is an ordinary fish-plate 30, a fish-plate 31 being disposed against the other side of the web and provided with a base flange 32 having an upstanding flange or lip 33 which corresponds to the flange 16 previously described. A key 34, correspond ing substantially to the key 23, is fitted into place in the channel formed between the flange 33 and the upright portion of the fish-plate 31 and serves, by bearing against the under sides of the nuts which secure the fish-plates in place, to lock the said nuts against backward rotation.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimedas new is:

1. A rail joint comprising a lower bearing member having a rail engaging portion at one'edge and an upwardly directed rib at the other edge, said rib havinga lower and an upper longitudinal channel and the rib and its channels extending obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the bearing member, a clamp member adapted to bear upon the flanges and against the webs of abutting rails, the outer edge of said clamp member being directed obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the bearing member and engaging in the lower obliquely directed channel, and a looking key bearing at one edge within the upper obliquely directed channel and at the other edge against the clamp member.

2. A rail joint comprising a lower hearing member having a rail engaging portion at one edge and a rib at the otheredge, said rib having a lower and an upper longitudinal channel and the rib and its channels extending obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the bearing member, a clamp member adaptedto bear upon the flanges and against the webs of abutting rails and provided with a longitudinally directed seat, the outer edge of said clamp member being directed obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the bearing member and engaging in the lower obliquely directed channel, and a looking key bearing at one edge within the longitudinal seat of the clamp member and at the other edge in the upper obliquely directed channel.

3. A rail joint comprising a lower hearing member having a rail engaging portion at one edge and an upwardly directed rib at the other edge, said rib having a lower and an upper longitudinal channel and the rib and its channels extending obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the bearing member, a clamp member adapted to bear upon the flanges and against the webs of abutting rails, the outer edge of said clamp member being directed obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the bearing member and engaging in the lower obliquely directed channel, clamp bolts including clamp nuts and extending through said clamp member and rail brace, and a locking key bearing at one edge within the upper obliquely directed channel and at the other edge against the clamp member, said key having a plurality of recesses to engage oneof saidclamp nuts and be locked from longitudinal displacement thereby.

4. A rail joint comprising a lower bearing member having an upwardly directed rib, said'ribextending obliquely to the longi tudinal axis of the bearing member and havsaid rib, and a tapered locking key bearing 10 mg a longitudinal channel in its oblique at its edges in said channels.

face, a clamp member adapted to bear upon In testimony whereof I aifix my signature the flange and against the web of abutting in presence of two witnesses. railway rails and having a longitudinally directed channel, the outer edge of said DAVIDSON STEEL" clamp member being directed obliquely to Witnesses: the longitudinal axis of the bearing member FRANK M. LEE, and engaging the obliquely directed face of T. M. REDWINE.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

